Catalonia
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Forget Brexit for a moment.. Europe has another huge headache. Catalonia wants independence, and they're getting a referendum on October 1st. About 2/3rds Catalans are in favour, pretty much every mayor in Catalonia favours it, and Spain is doing everything in it's power to make sure that doesn't happen.
One million Catalans march for independence on region's national day
Streets of Barcelona became a sea of estelada flags as pro-independence supporters turned out en masse ahead of referendum on 1 October
One million Catalans march for independence on region's national day
Streets of Barcelona became a sea of estelada flags as pro-independence supporters turned out en masse ahead of referendum on 1 October
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In Catalonia: A Spanish Tiananmen Square?
Spain and the Catalonians are headed for a violent confrontation
by Justin Raimondo Posted on September 18, 2017
(Excerpt...)
One of those crises that no one saw coming is about to rear its head in a very unlikely locale: Catalonia, Spain’s richest province, where the local government has scheduled an independence referendum on October 1. Of course, some observers saw it coming, but the current trend to find “fascists” under every bed in America may have obscured our ability to detect them where they really live – in Madrid, where the federal authorities are threatening to arrest Catalonian politicians who advocate independence.
Madrid has mobilized 4,000 police to stop the referendum. They are seizing election materials, shutting down web sites, and invading the offices of newspapers: they have threatened 700 pro-independence mayors with arrest and prosecution.
The Spanish position – upheld by the country’s Constitutional Court – is that only the federal authorities can call a referendum, and that in any case all Spanish voters, not just those resident in Catalonia, must be allowed to vote on the question of Catalonian independence. So much for the right of self-determination.
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Catalonia’s bid for self-determination is an ideological litmus test, one that tells us everything we need to know about the main forces contending for power in the world. The reason is because the crisis is taking place on the terrain of Europe, in the very midst of the “free” West. Since forever and a day we have been told that the “democratic” West doesn’t commit acts of mass repression against their own people: that the right of “self-determination” is universal, and that that liberal democracy is not about to mimic the methods of, say, Slobodan Milosevic, and put down a popular uprising by force. These methods – they claim — are the exclusive province of “illiberal” regimes, like those in Russia, Belarus, and now Hungary, which has been moved into the “illiberal” camp by its refusal to allow an invasion by Middle Eastern migrants.
Except that the threats and repressive measures of “democratic” Spain have exposed this conceit as nonsense. As October 1 approaches, and Madrid prepares to crush the Catalonian revolution with brute force, the myth of the “democratic” West is being shaken to its foundations – with the growing prospect that violent repression will bring the whole dilapidated edifice down on the heads of the people, both Spaniards and Catalonians alike.
[...]
READ THE WHOLE THING:
Against war and empire.
One of those crises that no one saw coming is about to rear its head in a very unlikely locale: Catalonia, Spain’s richest province, where the local - Justin Raimondo for Antiwar.com Original
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Catalonia Wants Independence From Spain | Long Story Short | NBC News
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No surprises here. Grant increased autonomy, self-government, language rights etc. why wouldn't the next logical step be full independence?
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@rancid-schnitzel said in Catalonia:
No surprises here. Grant increased autonomy, self-government, language rights etc. why wouldn't the next logical step be full independence?
The slow death of appeasement and piecemeal concessions.
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I've seen this issue from both sides as I worked with a guy from this region and had a good mate from Madrid. The Catalan was always meh if Spain won anything and didn't consider himself Spanish, while the guy from Madrid was always paying out the Catalans but would never even entertain their independence from Spain. This could potentially be a rather nasty situation.
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#WORLD NEWS / SEPTEMBER 20, 2017
Police arrest high-ranking Catalan officials in raids
MADRID/BARCELONA (Reuters) - Spanish police raided Catalan government offices and arrested officials on Wednesday to halt a banned referendum on independence, an action the regional president said meant Madrid had effectively taken over his administration.
Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the regional government offices in the center of Barcelona’s tourist district, waving the red-and-yellow Catalan flag and chanting “Occupying forces out” and “Where is Europe?”.
“The Spanish state has by all rights intervened in Catalonia’s government and has established emergency rule,” Catalan President Carles Puigdemont said in a televised address.
“We condemn and reject the anti-democratic and totalitarian actions of the Spanish state,” he said, adding that Catalans should still turn out in force to vote in the Oct. 1 referendum on a split from Spain that Madrid has declared illegal.
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Police efforts to stop the referendum, which the central government says is illegal, have intensified in recent days as the wealthy northeastern region shows no signs of halting it.
Acting under court orders, police have raided printers, newspaper offices and private delivery in a search for campaign literature, instruction manuals for manning voting stations, and ballot boxes.
[..]
Spanish police raid Catalan government to halt banned referendum
Spanish police raided Catalan government offices and arrested officials on Wednesday to halt a banned referendum on independence, an action the regional president said meant Madrid had effectively taken over his administration.
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FC Barcelona releases an official statement.
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Tonight's protests...
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This isn't going to end well. As much as I sympathise with the right to self determination etc. this vote was unconstitutional and illegal. Imagine if the Scottish parliament had unilaterally announced an independence vote.
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90% vote in favour... that includes at least 700,000 confiscated ballots... and I suspect the goon show today indicates Catalans feel they did the right thing.
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The Spanish Court Decision That Sparked the Modern Catalan Independence Movement
The community has a long history of autonomy—but one incident in particular helped set the stage for Sunday’s referendum.
The Spanish Court Decision That Sparked the Catalan Independence Movement
The community has a long history of autonomy—but one incident in particular helped set the stage for Sunday’s referendum.
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Post-referendum protests.
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Shit is really going to hit the fan next week...
Reuters reports:
Catalonia moves to declare independence from Spain on Monday
Catalonia moves to declare independence from Spain on Monday
SPAIN-POLITICS/CATALONIA (UPDATE 1, TV, PIX):UPDATE 1-Catalonia to move to declare independence from Spain on Monday
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Independent journalist Tim Pool is on the ground over there and has been doing some good interviews capturing what is going on. He's about as close to unbiased as I've ever seen from a journalist having followed his reports from the various events in the US and around the world.
The reason I'm mentioning him is youtube have naturally cut off advertising from his videos meaning he's been making about $9.00 per video from Catalonia and you can imagine that's not exactly offsetting costs. As such I've recently started throwing a couple dollars a month his way via Patreon as I'm finding his insights 1000% more trustworthy than any major news network.
If the police violence we saw in the referendum is anything to go by, there is bound to be some big developments in the upcoming days. If you want to check him out or support his work his details are below.
https://mobile.twitter.com/Timcast
Tim Pool
Tim Pool brings you breaking news from around the world and commentary on top news topics in Politics and Cultural issues around the world. Check out the live podcast Timcast IRL Monday through Friday at 8pm Use the email below for any business inquiries.
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@salacious-crumb This is what happens when you give people an inch. The longing for identity once awoken with the promise of fulfilment becomes like water from Tao Te Ching - it will inexorably have its way.
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BARCELONA/MADRID, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Catalonia will move on Monday to declare independence from Spain after holding a banned referendum, pushing the European Union nation towards a rupture that threatens the foundations of its young democracy.
Catalan President Carles Puigdemont said he favoured mediation to find a way out of the crisis but that Spain's central government had rejected this. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's government responded by calling on Catalonia to "return to the path of law" first before any negotiations.
Surely Puigdemont has no mandate whatsoever to "declare independence"? Clearly he is pro-independence but most polling shows the populace split close to 50/50 with maybe a slight advantage to the remainer/respainers?
The "referendum" was a sham. Poorly handled by central government doesn't help.
FT (Financial Times) reporting some of the big banks are moving out of Catalonia already.
The second-largest bank based in Catalonia has decided to move its legal headquarters out of the region as Catalan separatists and the Spanish authorities hurtle towards a showdown on Monday over the region’s push for independence.The decision on Thursday by Banco de Sabadell to move its headquarters to the eastern Spanish town of Alicante came at the same time that CaixaBank, the biggest bank in the region and the country’s third largest, also considered redomiciling outside Catalonia.
Seems like a hot mess.
Infidel is in Barcelona tonight and tomorrow, all very quiet from what I have seen.
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BARCELONA/MADRID, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Catalonia will move on Monday to declare independence from Spain after holding a banned referendum, pushing the European Union nation towards a rupture that threatens the foundations of its young democracy.
Catalan President Carles Puigdemont said he favoured mediation to find a way out of the crisis but that Spain's central government had rejected this. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's government responded by calling on Catalonia to "return to the path of law" first before any negotiations.
Surely Puigdemont has no mandate whatsoever to "declare independence"? Clearly he is pro-independence but most polling shows the populace split close to 50/50 with maybe a slight advantage to the remainer/respainers?
The "referendum" was a sham. Poorly handled by central government doesn't help.
FT (Financial Times) reporting some of the big banks are moving out of Catalonia already.
The second-largest bank based in Catalonia has decided to move its legal headquarters out of the region as Catalan separatists and the Spanish authorities hurtle towards a showdown on Monday over the region’s push for independence.
The decision on Thursday by Banco de Sabadell to move its headquarters to the eastern Spanish town of Alicante came at the same time that CaixaBank, the biggest bank in the region and the country’s third largest, also considered redomiciling outside Catalonia.
Seems like a hot mess.
Infidel is in Barcelona tonight and tomorrow, all very quiet from what I have seen.
Baron Silas Greenback wonders why Infidel referred to himself in the 3rd person.
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BARCELONA/MADRID, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Catalonia will move on Monday to declare independence from Spain after holding a banned referendum, pushing the European Union nation towards a rupture that threatens the foundations of its young democracy.
Catalan President Carles Puigdemont said he favoured mediation to find a way out of the crisis but that Spain's central government had rejected this. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's government responded by calling on Catalonia to "return to the path of law" first before any negotiations.
Surely Puigdemont has no mandate whatsoever to "declare independence"? Clearly he is pro-independence but most polling shows the populace split close to 50/50 with maybe a slight advantage to the remainer/respainers?
The "referendum" was a sham. Poorly handled by central government doesn't help.
FT (Financial Times) reporting some of the big banks are moving out of Catalonia already.
The second-largest bank based in Catalonia has decided to move its legal headquarters out of the region as Catalan separatists and the Spanish authorities hurtle towards a showdown on Monday over the region’s push for independence.
The decision on Thursday by Banco de Sabadell to move its headquarters to the eastern Spanish town of Alicante came at the same time that CaixaBank, the biggest bank in the region and the country’s third largest, also considered redomiciling outside Catalonia.
Seems like a hot mess.
Infidel is in Barcelona tonight and tomorrow, all very quiet from what I have seen.
Rancid Schnitzel agrees. No problem with self determination but there are laws and processes that have to be followed. You can't just ram through a vote like this. There are wide-ranging implications for all Spaniards, not just the Catalans. Could be wrong, but it seems to me that they're concerned that if they went through the proper process they wouldn't get a majority. That is understandable when looking at Scotland and Quebec, but still illegal.
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European countries with economy smaller than Catalonia
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So, on the same day Catalonia declares independence and the Spanish parliament approves direct rule over the province.
This is looking more and more dangerous.
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Barcelona city hall right now removing Spanish and EU flags. Shit is about to get really-real.
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